On the edge of Tongguan Ferry, Hedong, many wooden pontoon bridges are being built.
The river became silent in the wind and snow. The gurgling sound of the river that seemed to never stop was now turned into a collision of ice. Some wooden stakes and wooden boards made unbearable moans when they collided with ice.
The wind was rotating with snow, and the soldiers walking along the floating bridge on the river surface pressed down their bodies as much as possible. Even the words between them had to wait for the wind to stop before they could be said. On the one hand, it was to prevent the cold wind from pouring into their stomachs, and on the other hand, it was only in this way that the other party could hear them.
On the river surface, ice cubes of large and small slowly drifted down, sometimes hitting the shore, making a crisp sound, and then shattered into smaller ice cubes, gradually fading away.
Yesterday, in the snow and snow, Cao Hong captured Fenglingdu, and several Hedong towers turned into ruins.
The Cao army almost started to build bridgeheads, or beach villages, almost without stopping. Even if it was cold and cold, whether it was logging or digging, the Cao army soldiers were still piled up and built like ants.
While the main force of Cao's army was attacking wildly, the Hedong army line began to shrink back and evacuate some scattered civilians and soldiers, leaving behind scouts and cavalry cruising and blocking, as if they had agreed to Fenglingdu and return to Cao's army's control.
A team of cavalry without a banner came from the north and stopped on a hill.
The wind and snow are like wild horses running through the mountains.
The sky was covered with gray-black clouds, and no one knew how much rain and snow were hidden in the clouds, when was it stored, and when it would be finished.
The snowflakes that fell from time to time were like countless snow-white elves, flying freely, and then stained on the fur of the leather robe on Fei Qian's body.
Fei Qian did not abandon the relatively cold-resistant fur in order to maintain the majesty of the Han family. He was like a Hu man, wearing a thick leather robe to keep warm. Behind him, there was a guy who was a circle bigger than Fei Qian, who was also wearing fur. At first glance, he looked like a bear, which was Xu Chu.
Xu Chu looked around and saw no sign of Cao's scout.
Above the hills, the wind and snow seemed to be even more violent.
The wind roared, like the sound of an ancient flute, miserable and melodious, constantly circling between the mountains and forests.
In the Taihang Mountains on one side, you can clearly see the cold wind blowing up snow particles, forming waves of white smoke and dust, which looks like a dragon on the back of the mountain.
Wei Yan, this kid...
Fei Qian withdrew his gaze and tickled.
I won’t mention the towering Taihang Mountain. Even in Zhongtiao Mountain, there is a snow peak.
Cao Cao really wants to cross Zhongtiao Mountain in such weather...
"Let's go, go a little further!"
Fei Qian greeted him, and then rode his horse forward.
The group continued to move forward, and Zhongtiao Mountain in front of them was getting closer and closer.
"Lord, you can't continue moving forward." Xu Chu suddenly rode his horse forward and rushed forward for two steps. "If you move forward further, you will be discovered by Cao's army."
"Yes, OK." Fei Qian didn't show off. "Find a place and have a better vision..."
Xu Chu looked around, then whistled slightly, and reached out to point.
Several guards ran out of the queue and headed towards the direction Xu Chu pointed out.
After a while, the guard showed his figure there, indicating safety.
Then Xu Chu followed Fei Qian to the hills.
After climbing up the hill, Fei Qian took a moment of breath and pulled out the telescope that had been warm from his arms, then held the telescope in front of him and squinted his eyes.
Suddenly some mist blocked the eyes.
Fei Qian wiped it with leather gloves, thinking about someone to add some warm leather hoods to the telescope, while looking forward.
In the distance, Cao's army was very busy and densely packed. Even with the blessing of the telescope, he was still like a nest of ants, lying densely on the falling cone.
Zhongtiao Mountain is that cone.
The infantry of the Cao army, or the Chinese army, was still very strong instinct, and the fortifications built at the intersection seemed to be visible to the naked eye.
This kind of weather, logging and labor are really deadly.
Cao's army really invested a lot of money...
Xu Chu whispered: "Lord, the scout returns, and found that the general who led the troops was Cao Hong and Cao Zilian..."
Fei Qian nodded.
Cao Hong's son's head was still pickled in the lime box, like Laba garlic, a little green.
『Send someone to send the wounded soldiers of Cao's army back...』 Fei Qian ordered, 『As for the heads of Cao and Xiahou... he also uses them...』
The heads will eventually be sent back.
But not now.
We need to see the direction of Cao Cao and Cao Hong.
Xu Chu answered.
Fei Qian looked at the prototype of the Cao army camp in the distance, for some reason, but he seemed to be increasingly indifferent to the issue of life and death.
Not only for others, but also for yourself.
Is there no risk when I come to check the Cao army camp with my own eyes?
But I still come.
This is actually a dangerous signal...
Perhaps Fei Qian has seen too many lives and deaths, just like a doctor in the emergency department in the hospital. Every day, even every hour, I see patients dying in front of me. If I am not used to it or are not numb, I cannot continue working and cannot treat the next patient who needs treatment in urgent need of treatment.
"Tell me, what have I found out these days?" Fei Qian asked while watching.
Xu Chu reported, "Thirty thousand Cao's soldiers crossed the river yesterday, and it is expected to expand to five thousand today. Most of them were Cao's soldiers, but many of them were Heluo Yang's soldiers..."
In order to distinguish the soldiers of the Yang family in Heluo were slightly different in terms of clothing from the Cao army and Fei army. Moreover, because the Yang family was a surrendered army, there was a shortage of supplies for cold protection. Looking at the ones trembling in the cold wind, it was basically confirmed that the Yang family surrendered.
Fei Qian listened while observing with a telescope.
『Cao army can't hold on for long...』 Fei Qian sighed, 『Shandong's wealthy land... Now it's the first thing they can't hold on, but they... Shandong has money, but Cao army fighting for Shandong has no money. What an irony...』
Fei Qian is indifferent to life and death.
It's just relative.
In the telescope, Fei Qianneng saw some Cao's army in the wind and snow, whether due to injuries or cold, sometimes they fell to the ground while walking, and then failed to get up for a long time. Whether it was the soldiers beside him or the non-commissioned officers who were surveillance in the distance, they seemed to ignore it.
Of course, most of the people who fell to the ground were from Heluo, which was the part of the Yang family surrendered troops.
Heluo people...
I had Sili’s household registration back then, and it was so awesome.
Xu Chu said: "Although those Heluo people followed, they may not fight to the death, so they were regarded as labor... But even among the Cao army, they were divided into three or six levels. The combat power of the Xuzhou soldiers and Yangzhou soldiers was the worst..."
"The best one is the Qingzhou soldiers?" Fei Qian said casually.
"It's a soldier in Qiao County." Xu Chu replied.
Fei Qian was slightly stunned for a moment, then nodded, "This time, Cao Mengde is really going to fight to the death..."
Qiao County is Lao Cao's coffin.
Fei Qian put down the telescope, put the collar back into his arms. Nowadays, there is no rubber. The only way to prevent weapons from sticking to the skin is to wrap the linen, or use body temperature to keep warm like Fei Qian.
Fei Qian looked up at the sky, then looked at the river in the distance.
Although the river rarely freezes when it comes to Fenglingdu, the temperature has dropped sharply in the past few days, and there is already some ice on the shore. It is likely that the water surface will freeze at night, but it is still difficult to pass through the carriages.
Xu Chu hesitated for a moment, but finally said: "Lord, aren't you really setting up an ambush in Zhongtiao Mountain?"
Fei Qian nodded. "No need."
Fei Qian has some not very good memories of Zhongtiao Mountain.
This memory was not from the Han Dynasty.
Zhongtiao Mountain has no depth. Of course, what is more important is that Wei Yan, the main force in the mountain war, is really a slut, and he will disappear after he let go...
Therefore, Fei Qian simply played his strengths and avoided his weaknesses, and did not entangle with Cao's army on Zhongtiao Mountain, but instead placed the main battlefield in the Yuncheng Basin.
When Cao's army came to Hedong, the target was still Guanzhong, but no matter what, only by letting Cao's army enter the plains and wilderness can they attack their main force.
Fei Qian judged that Cao's army actually did not have much potential for war. As long as one major battle was defeated, the war system of Cao's army would fall apart.
It was like the Battle of Red Cliffs in history. Old Cao's depth was not enough, just like Zhongtiao Mountain. He placed all the heavy troops on the front line, but did not have the ability to strike twice or three times. Therefore, after the Battle of Red Cliffs was hit, he basically lost the ability to fight large-scale foreign wars. Even during the first northern expedition in Sichuan and Shu, Zhuge Liang almost stole three bases...
Of course, even if Zhuge Liang guarded Jieting, he might not be able to succeed, because Zhuge Liang had not solved Li Yan at that time, and there were still many military and political affairs in Sichuan and Shu that Zhuge Liang could not control, and even brought many soldiers. At least, Zhuge Brother could not move at all in Jiangzhou.
"It's easy to come in in Yuncheng, but it's difficult to get out." Fei Qian smiled and said, "I'm afraid that Prime Minister Cao won't come."
Xu Chu said proudly from the side: "Even if you don't come, you will struggle to die, and your life will not last long!"
Fei Qian laughed twice, then turned around and left.
...
...
The ninth year of Taixing, the twentyth day of the first lunar month.
Another cooling swept across the north.
The howling cold wind came from a distance, as if it was about to destroy everything, roaring and carrying ice and snow, covering the sky and the earth, with the momentum of dragging everything into the frozen world, but the war wanted to fight against this cold, and instead it was becoming more and more heated.
The three armies of Cao's army were almost all dispatched. In addition to maintaining the logistics of food and grass in the rear, they seemed to have put all the soldiers into the war. From the Zhuguan Road to Fenglingdu, it seemed that every inch of land was covered with Cao's soldiers.
Fei Qian took the initiative to evacuate the southern line of Zhongtiao Mountain, and the vanguard retreated back to Yixian. In addition, a cavalry was arranged between Zhangyangchi and Jiexian, building a defense line from Pubanjin to Zhangyangchi, from Yixian to Jiexian, and then to Anyi.
The soldiers of Cao's army also began to cross Zhongtiao Mountain frequently, attempting to enter the Yuncheng Basin for detection.
On the one hand, Cao's army crossed the river from Zhongtiao Mountain in Hedong, and on the other hand, Cao Xiu broke through the mountain road by Jiguan, making it difficult to continue to defend, so Liu Fu and others also retreated to Anyi one after another.
Cao Cao himself also crossed the river and raised the banner of the three armies in Zhongtiao Mountain, as if he was going to march into Hedong in an all-round way.
The Yuncheng Basin has always been a place where military strategists must fight for.
On the one hand, Cao Cao stepped up his attack on Tongguan, and on the other hand, he marched into Hedong in person, undoubtedly to fully utilize his advantages of numerous soldiers. But is the reason behind it just because of military needs?
However, when Cao Cao arrived in Hedong, he had not yet received a big gift from Anyi, Hedong before his butt was hot.
Previously, Cao Cao sent Cao's wounded soldiers to attack Hedong.
The arrival of these Cao army's wounded soldiers suddenly seemed to pour a basin of cold water on Cao army's face, and soon began to freeze and penetrate into the flesh and blood.
Because of the wind and snow weather, it can almost be said that whether it is Zhongtiao Mountain or Wangwu Mountain, as long as it can withstand the severe cold, the drinking water problem of climbing through the mountain road is no longer a problem. Therefore, Cao Cao was surprised by the retreat of the cavalry and horses in Zhongtiao Mountain and Wangwu Mountain, but on the one hand, he also felt that it was reasonable.
But Cao Cao didn't expect that as soon as he arrived in Hedong, he was sent to these surrendered soldiers.
Kill, you cannot kill.
Put it, not let it go.
The key is that these wounded soldiers will spread some "malice words"...
It can only be to transfer these wounded soldiers to the rear and isolate them from the front line.
Even so, the Cao army soldiers, especially those who are not core, have more or less discussed.
The core of Cao Cao and the Xiahou clan of Cao had the determination to fight to the death with Fei Qian, but the problem was that the soldiers and generals of other parts of the Cao army did not have the determination to die.
Because he was willing to spend money and built a floating bridge to cross the river despite the wind and snow, many soldiers of Cao's army were frostbite and frozen to death. Now the wounded soldiers did not receive the treatment they deserved, but were directly driven to the rear camp. Although Cao Cao did not say how to deal with it or how to reward these people, everyone knew in his mind that he would guess more or less what the fate of these wounded soldiers would be.
Under such circumstances, the originally suppressed emotions were naturally stirred up.
In war, many times, it is like holding your breath, and whoever can’t hold on first will lose his courage.
Simply put, Cao Cao knew why he wanted to attack Guanzhong, and even the important counselors such as Guo Jia also understood, but the middle and lower-level soldiers were not clear. They just knew that Fei Qian was a traitor and Dong Zhuo of the Han Dynasty. As for what Fei Qian did, or it was really like the rumors that he had green faces and fangs. Do you really have to eat the hearts and livers of the children every day, and then even the Guanzhong children could not give birth to...
The soldiers of Cao's army were not clear, and their information was incomplete. During the period of morale rising and when the attack was favorable, this incomplete information would not have any big impact. Just like when Cao Cao expanded the territory and blood flowed into a river, these soldiers even felt happy.
Because it is not their own blood.
Massacre Xuzhou, counter-calculate Yanzhou, eliminate Jizhou, and exploit Jingzhou...
When opponents who have lost their ability to resist fall, it's so cool.
But now, they saw their blood flowing into a river.
It's really blood flowing.
Blood mixed in the snow and flowed down the river.
When the attack on Tongguan was the most intense, the number of people who died every day even exceeded 2,000...
Most of the corpses of these people were worried about the disease and were buried, but many of them were also flowing down the river.
Watching others die, you can shout that I want to see the blood flowing, but is it my turn to face death...
But the problem is that Cao Cao really didn't have the heart to explain anything to ordinary soldiers, and they were not used to explaining downwards. Perhaps they were used to concealing them, or perhaps they felt that it was very difficult to explain, so they didn't explain most of the time.
Not explaining is indeed a waste of time, but it does not mean that the problem will disappear automatically.
Deception may be concealed for a while, but when the facts are revealed, in addition to sudden enlightenment, most of them will also lead to anger that not only deceives my IQ, but also plays with my emotional anger...
So is it effective to wait for this time to tell the truth to the soldiers and confess the facts?
On the contrary, after the soldiers understood that they had been deceived, even if they were telling the truth, no one would believe it.
In comparison, Fei Qian's side has no worries in this regard. It's very simple. In a sense, Cao's side is a "invader". Resisting the invaders and protecting their hometown is almost everyone's instinct. There is no need to emphasize that Fei Qian's side's fighting morale will not be much weaker, just like adding a BUFF with morale not falling to its own territory.
Cao Cao originally thought that the Cavalry Army would set up defenses on Zhongtiao Mountain, so that they could take advantage of the large population. Cao Xiu and Cao Hong advanced side by side, interspersed and encircled some of the Cavalry Army to boost the morale of the soldiers. However, Cao Cao did not expect that Fei Qian would give up stopping the mountain, as if he was in a position to allow them to march.
"The cavalry arrived in Hedong?"
Cao Cao was a little suspicious, but he was not completely sure.
Because doing such things is like an open conspiracy on the table, it is very similar to Fei Qian's method. But now many guys in Guanzhong have learned bad things with Fei Qian.
"If the cavalry is in Hedong..." Guo Jia said slowly, "Then he will fight with his lord in Hedong..."
Cao Cao was silent, looking north, as if he wanted to see the arrangement in Pingyang through the wind and snow, and even Fei Qian's strategy.
Guo Jia's voice continued, "The lord went in four directions this time, Youzhou was one way, and the general Zihe was still honored even though he was defeated, and Youzhou was not lost, and the merits and demerits could be offset; Bingzhou was one way, and General Wenqian retreated and suffered many injuries. It was originally a feint attack, which was not considered the blame of General Wenqian... As for General Yuan Rang, his troops entered Taiyuan, and he had gained a lot, and he involved the soldiers of Yinshan; Jingzhou was one way, and now he went to Wuguan and secretly to Hanzhong; Silizhugong's journey, although there were some losses in the early stage, he had crossed the river now..."
Cao Cao was silent.
"If the cavalry is in Guanzhong, it will be great..." Guo Jia said slowly, "If it is in Hedong, wouldn't it be wonderful if he can lead him to fight?"
Cao Cao stood in the wind and snow with his hands behind his back. After a moment, he laughed loudly, "Those who know me are filial piety!"
Of course, neither of them mentioned that premise...
Chapter completed!